Sterling silverware is some of the best cutlery around, for several very obvious reasons. One reason is what it is made of – sterling silver. Silver is quite possibly the best of the precious metals to create flatware out of, since gold is too soft and other materials like copper can cause skin issues.
Furthermore, sterling silver is an industry-assured form of silver that is 92.5% silver by purity and fineness. The other 7.5% is a different metal mixed into the alloy to give it strength, since silver is actually quite a soft metal as well, especially in its more pure forms. Sterling silver, however, is very very strong – this means that a good set is not only beautiful, affordable and high-quality, but will likely also endure the course of more than a few generations. This kind of value is so good that it’s quite impossible to refuse, really.
And if you want evidence of the longevity of silver, just check out the amounts of sterling silverware sets that have made it into our hands today, passed down from generation to generation. Unfortunately as time goes on it seems that fewer and fewer younger people these days want to hang on to them and with the price of silver ever increasing more sets are sure to be sold off as scrap silver which will make the surviving sets even more valuable.
The sheer variety and amount of styles that antique sterling silver flatware is available in is staggering. So many different antique sets have survived to see today; and the amount of different patterns is astounding, particularly the way it can be traced to different artistic and architectural styles in Europe, perhaps in some rare cases actually going all the way back to the medieval days of kings and queens.
However, the wide variety of styles and designs out there means that if you are actually going to purchase a full set, it is important to either do your research, or perhaps take an expert with you. Places that sell these silver flatware sets will also usually have an expert on hand to help you make your choice. Purchasing antique flatware is not like purchasing regular flatware; it is like purchasing art, and it always helps to have someone on hand who is familiar with the different sterling silver flatware patterns, as they can get quite nuanced at times.
Of course, there are modern-day brands as well, and the same thing applies. Examine all the different brands before you purchase, and make sure you know the advantages and disadvantages of each. Of course, it is important to note that the differences are merely aesthetic – all modern brands have quite a high level of quality.
Each brand has their own unique style, however. For example, Lunt (a 100-year-old company) is usually quite curvaceous and very inspired by modern ideas; by contrast, Wallace is a lot more sober, longer, and usually has more of what could be called a baroque influence; definitely more formal, at the very least. And Gorham falls somewhere between the two, with a particular visual style that is as informed by modern ideas about art and design as it is influenced by tradition and the grand old days of yore.
Reed and Barton flatware is another old company that has stood the test of time, established in 1824, it remains one of the higher end manufacturers of both sterling silver cutlery and silver plated flatware. As they have been in business since 1824 they are also one of the more prevalent companies you will run across in the antique flatware realm as well. Modern times have seen them venture into crystal, giftware, photo frames, jewellery cases flatware cases and more.
So if you pride yourself on being a person of style, or even if you simply have a passion for food, it makes sense to eat well, which means being very discriminate in the sort of utensils you use. Quality metal and quality craftsmanship are things that are important as much in the kitchen as anywhere else in your life.